Guests of the Gastronomic Rows appreciated the regional flavour palette on Russia Day
A large-scale gastronomic presentation dedicated to Russia Day took place on June 12 at the Gastronomic Rows of the National Centre RUSSIA. The festival of national flavours was hosted by the finest culinary masters from across the country — from the Russian Far East to the Golden Ring.
Chefs and entrepreneurs — creators of regional gastro-tourism projects — held workshops for the visitors of the Gastronomic Rows at the National Centre RUSSIA, where guests had the opportunity to learn the secrets of traditional dishes and appreciate their unique taste.
"Traditionally, we celebrate Russia Day with our large, multi-ethnic culinary family. Today, we served over 1,000 servings of Russian dishes and dishes from the cuisines of the peoples of our country, as well as a three-metre-long kulebyaka weighing 40 kilograms to guests of the celebration at the Gastronomic Rows of the National Centre RUSSIA. Many annual holidays will become a tradition in the space of our National Centre, and first and foremost these are Russia Day and National Unity Day — days of pride in our multicultural cultural, historical and, of course, gastronomic legacy," emphasised Yekaterina Shapovalova, author of the gastronomic programmes.
The parade of territorial flavours began with a family cooking class by the Bokov culinary dynasty from the village of Tsentralnye Koryaki in the Yelizovsky district of Kamchatka. Svetlana Bokova, founder of the Far Eastern cuisine brand "Kamchatka House," her mother Irina Vladimirovna, and her four-year-old daughter Yeseniya prepared a dish of telnoe made from sockeye salmon, filled with mashed potatoes and topped with a pink salmon caviar sauce. This family recipe has been passed down through the women of the family for over a hundred years.
Traditional Russian cuisine of the Upper Volga region was presented by the team behind Alexei Shevtsov’s projects "Fish Corner" and "Hidden Russia." Guests sampled Plyos uteshki-pies — miniature delicacies made with ultra-thin pastry, following the recipe of noble estate mistress Yekaterina Shchulepnikova from the Uteshnoye estate. The pies were offered with four traditional fillings: sturgeon spinal cord (viziga), cabbage, pickled cucumbers, and chicken liver.
Zulkan Khakimova, chef of the Chechen cuisine project "DAAR" from the Chechen Republic, introduced guests to the traditional dish of zhizhig-galnash — boiled fresh or cured halal meat (beef, lamb or chicken) served with boiled corn and wheat dumplings. The dish is accompanied by rich meat broth with garlic, potato sauce, and adjika.
A dish of the indigenous people of Buryatia — buuz — is prepared by the whole family. These steamed meat and dough dumplings resemble the traditional Buryat dwellings — yurts. During the folding process, 33 pleats must be made: according to legend, this is the number of folds on the garments of Tibetan lamas in the 16th century. Buuz were presented to the guests of the National Centre RUSSIA by Angarag Chagdurov, art director of the Buryat cuisine restaurant "Orda," and his mother Tuyana Sodnomova, a chef of the project. Buuz should be eaten by hand only — the people of Buryatia believe that this way, the taste receptors are fully engaged in the experience.
Danila Kozlov, founder of the "Alphabet of the North" chain of shops and producers of northern fish delicacies, spoke about a legendary dish of the peoples of the Far North — stroganina made from Arctic char. Selected fresh-frozen river fish was specially brought to the National Centre RUSSIA from the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). Stroganina is a dish quite literally made by the cold: Yakut fishermen freeze the fish just once, in natural conditions, immediately after catching it, at a temperature of minus 40 to 60 degrees.
A unique recipe for the Russian festive pie — the Don kurnik — was unveiled by Oleg Kuchkov, author of the project and founder of the "Tsar-Kurnik" production in Rostov-on-Don. This dome-shaped masterpiece was made from thin pancakes layered with fillings of mushrooms, chicken meat and other traditional ingredients. According to different versions, the name of the dish comes either from its main filling — kuryatina (Russian for chicken meat) — or from the word kuren (Russian for a rural dwelling). The street version of mini-kurniks, each small enough to fit in the palm of a hand, was first introduced by Russian cuisine enthusiast and entrepreneur Andrei Kuchkov in 2017 for the 2018 FIFA World Cup at the "Gastronomic Map of Russia" festival.
The culmination of the festive programme for Russia Day was the presentation of a true symbol of Russian culinary art — the kulebyaka. This complex and labour-intensive creation was prepared by young chefs from the gastronomy art school of the Tavrida Art Cluster: Mikhail Gavrilov, chef of the ethnocultural project "To Eat in Karelia," and Andrei Vinogradov, chef of the "North" corner of the Gastronomic Rows and the mobile Arctic kitchen "Arctic Moon."
The ceremonial classic kulebyaka, three metres long and weighing 40 kilograms, was filled with cod from Belgorod, trout from Karelia, rice, mushrooms, onions and chicken egg.
All culinary shows, tastings and other informative events at the Gastronomic Rows of the National Centre RUSSIA are free of charge. To stay up to date with upcoming gastronomic surprises and be among the first to discover flavours from all over the country, check the "Events" section at russia.ru.
Event photobank
Concerts were held simultaneously in 12 regions of the country on Russia Day.
